Launch Smart City mission by end of June, Centre tells cities

Each of the 16 cities, including Pune, furnished details of projects being prepared in respect of area-based development, including retrofitting and redevelopment and ICT-based pan-city solutionsTNN | April 19, 2016, 07:10 IST

PUNE: Union urban development secretary Rajiv Gauba has asked Pune and other cities selected for the Smart City Mission to ensure that it is launched by June 25.

While urging the chosen cities Smart Cities to ensure appointment of full time Chief Executive Officers (CEO) for the Special Purpose Vehicles (SPV), Guba said that civic bodies also have the option of appointing professionals as CEOs.

Recently, Gauba recently spoke with civic chiefs municipal commissioners and mission directors of 16 smart cities through video-conferencing and urged them to ensue launch of projects by June 25, thus marking the first year of mission launch of Smart City Mission. "Given the shortage of officers, look beyond the IAS cadre given the shortage of officers and choose professionals to for heading SPVs," Gauba urban development secretary told officials.

During the two-hour interaction, he also Gauba reviewed the progress in terms of converting in respect of conversion of Smart City Plans of these cities into specific projects to for tendering and awarding of works. Gauba ascertained each city's progress through the in respect of putting in place institutional mechanisms that have been put in place, transfer of central grants and share of respective states to SPVs, preparation of Detailed Project Reports to for calling tenders, and so on etc.

Each of the 16 cities, including Pune, furnished details of projects being prepared in respect of area-based development, including retrofitting and redevelopment and ICT-based pan-city solutions.

Meanwhile, the first meeting of the Pune SPV, scheduled on Saturday, was postponed to Monday. The Monday meeting is likely to decide further course of action, including drafting a plan for project implementation of projects and appointment of SPV officials.

An investment of about Rs 700 crore is expected in the pan-city projects that will be implemented across Pune over the next five years.The mission will focus on fixing the biggest concerns mobility, water and public transport improvement through better availability and reliability.

A Smart Pune public transport system is on the anvil.

In addition, the civic body aims to increase public transport use from the current 18% to 50% under the mission. and efforts to achieve a 50% public transport use benchmark, which is just 18% today will be taken up under the Mission

Currently, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) is levied at 12 per cent on payments made for under-construction property or ready-to-move-in flats where completion certificate has not been issued at the time of sale.